Three-day-event rider Mark Todd was among a handful of names being tipped for the job of flag bearer for the New Zealand team at tomorrow's Olympic opening ceremony in Beijing, but rower Mahe Drysdale has been named for the job.

Todd ranked second with 871 votes (17.8%) on a poll on the website Stuff, just behind Valerie Vili, who garnered 968 votes (19.8%). Drysdale was seventh in the public poll, with 5.1% (251) of the votes. In sixth place in the poll with 6.5% of the vote was pistol shooter Yang Wang, the only Chinese-born athlete in New Zealand's squad.

Todd carried the flag for New Zealand in 1992, and current team manager Blyth Tait did the job in 2000.

This year will be the sixth Olympic Games for both Todd and team-mate Andrew Nicholson.